In vehicles and in particular in a commercial aircraft a host of cooling tasks are to be performed by cooling systems. Apart from cooling large quantities of air for cabin air conditioning, other heat-generating devices are also to be cooled, which devices relate, in particular, to electrical and electronic apparatus. Commonly-used air conditioning systems of a commercial aircraft are based on cooling units that implement an air circuit method (Joule-Thomson method) and/or an evaporator circuit method (Clausius-Rankine method). These circuits require the operation of compressors that are supplied either electrically or by way of bleed air, for example from aircraft engines, with the capacity necessary for operation. However, this may have a negative effect on the fuel consumption of the vehicle.
DE 199 36 641 A1 shows a device for air conditioning a cabin region of a passenger aircraft by means of externally supplied fresh air and bleed air from an engine.